In market halls, the sense of place is intensified: vegetables, bread, coffee beans, cakes and delicacies, smiles, stares, smell of spice, people strolling around, people separated by counters of fruits; buyers and sellers and loiterers all in one moment of time and space, all in the Market Hall. The time has stopped, this is how the country really is: all that has been built is built on this.

Things to Do in Finland gives introductory notes on how to survive a trip to Finland.

We Finns might be reserved to the point of rudeness, but there is one place where we don’t hesitate to squeeze into a small, hot cubicle and still enjoy a cheery conversation. And this place is sauna.Continue Reading…

If you’re about to travel to Finland, skip the city break in Helsinki, skiing holiday in Lapland or island tours on the coastal region, and book yourself an original Finnish summer cottage for a week or two. And how do you know the cottage is an original one, and not purpose built for tourists? Well, there are a few defining questions you can ask:

It was fantastic to be shortlisted in the ‘newcomer’ category at the Image.ie blog awards. As a freelancer, it is difficult to get to know new people as you don’t have the daily work force around you. I started blogging because after moving to Dublin I didn’t have the coffee and chat company surrounding me that I have grown accustomed to in Finland – and mind you, some letters seemed to get lost in the mailman’s pockets suspiciously often.

About a month ago I booked flights to Finland, and I started to look forward to my hometown’s forresty scenery and tranquil atmosphere. The grumpy looking grandmas at the market square and the daily walks along lake Pieksänjärvi with my dog Ernesti. Rowing the boat at the summer cottage, coffee shops selling massive cinnamon buns and milk packed in carton instead of plastic! Conveniently the woollen sock season would have kicked in already, so I would have a good reason to enjoy cosy evenings in front of the fireplace. Yeah, and the houses would be effectively insulated, the trash recycled and empty bottles returned to shops. Little crumbs of joy in my life otherwise aiming to grandioseness!Continue Reading…